Alabama doll wanna be.Tutorial

I started with one of my MJ. bodies. the mask is made from rigid wrap placed over an old metal head. As you can see there are 2 pieces to the head. I put 3 layers of rigid wrap.Drying in between layers. I glued the mask pieces front and back onto the cloth body/head. I then built up the side of the head where there was no mask. There was quite a bit of sanding to do.

Columbian

I have done a bit more on this doll.She has clothes! I feel she needs a little more shading and thicker eyebrows.

I picked up this fabric years ago not knowing what I would make with it. Just knew I liked it. It is perfect for this doll. Hard to see the detail but it has pieced fabric pieces with a fabric ruffle and dyed lace, between the pieces. It is vintage looking. Have a good week j

Classic cloth dolls

It has been a very long time since I posted here.I have been doing a lot of quilt making and making American Girl doll clothes.
I did put faces on some dolls I made a while ago.The patterns are not mine and right now I can't think who they belong to.The smaller of the 2 is a boy. They now are waiting for clothes. I hope to be more active,this year, on this blog. I need to get back to painting the dolls I love to make. No matter how hard I try there is only one person that could paint an Columbian doll. Emma herself. I will only be able to, ever,paint a Judith Ann wanna be Columbian doll. I just keep trying.

 

How I oil painted this cloth doll

I use vintage feed sacks to make the dolls. They are sewn and stuffed. I use paper clay to hide the center seam in the face.Ears sewn and glued on.Paper clay added to hide seams. Gessoed then the first flesh color is applied. I prefer to let that first coat dry. Using colored pencil to outline face.Using burnt sienna to paint outline. Adding color to all areas.A little paint goes a long way.I had a very good painter tell me to remember light to dark and dark to light. It is how I do my painting. A little dot of paint placed say by the nose. can be moved with a shade brush to give the shading you want to achieve. Soften the outlines by moving the paint with your shade brush. Hope this helps give ideas where to start when painting a cloth doll.I am no expert but I have found what works for me.j

 

 To get the flesh color I mix titanium white and burnt sienna. I mix to get 3 shades of the flesh color. Darker, medium dark and light. Mix the dark then add more white to get the other shades.

 

FINISHED her dress, blommers and bonnet.

I finally got her dressed.Why is it the dolls always take the back seat to other things in my life?

Maleah Jokella ,(means pretty jewel) is her name.
Her shawl is a vintage collar.Her bonnet and bloomers are homespun fabric.Her dress is reproduction civil war fabric.She is about 20 inches tall and oil painted. She is made from my own pattern.She is for sale.$500.00 plus shipping.

I knew if I did not get her done soon it would be summer before I got back to her.

 The gardens call, to me, when spring comes along. The problem is spring is here for one day then is gone again and it is back to cold weather. Gave me a day to sew.

We have a frost warning again tonight. I had hoped the tulips would not get frozen off this year. I will cover them tonight the buds are just ready to burst open.
I will try to do better with posting.
Any one working on a classic cloth doll?
hope you all have a safe storm free weekend.j

Painting

Monica Johansson sent a comment to the last post.
Hi Monica,
All I can say about painting is just practice. If you can take classes do so. It is what got me started.
Really look at what you are painting. Don't be afraid to experiment.
I found that a tiny dot of paint can be moved  with a shader brush to give detail.
Look at the nose. There is more to the nostril than a line.
There is a hole that needs defining with a darker color. The shape is like a comma. The  nose has 2 defining lines on the outside but also on the top there are soft lines defining shape and detail..
For me I could see the detail but did not know how to achieve it. Messing with the paints and practice helped.
I still have a long way to go but I keep trying.

With oil painted dolls I never know when they are done. I have repainted many dolls.

I finally got arms and legs on the last doll of color I painted. She is darker than the others I have done. Not sure I like her. May have to redo a bit. You never know. The progress on this doll has been very slow.Any one working on dolls?
Share pictures if you can.Have a good week. j